


Day Forty || Very Subtle

by 365daysofsasuhina



Series: 365 Days of SasuHina 2019 [40]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Swearing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-10
Updated: 2019-02-10
Packaged: 2019-10-25 13:45:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17726327
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/365daysofsasuhina/pseuds/365daysofsasuhina
Summary: 'Subtle' isn't exactly an oft-used word in Sasuke's dictionary. Especially when regarding his wife.





	Day Forty || Very Subtle

If there’s one thing Sasuke struggles with in regards to his actions, it’s...subtlety. Whether it’s bold pronunciations of revenge against a certain someone...or a declaration of becoming Hokage upon a battlefield in the midst of a war, he’s not the sort to mince words,  _ or _ actions.

A habit he’s... _ tried _ to work on the past few years, what with his return to Konoha. At first he’d cared little about his reputation or how people perceived him and his manners. But times changed, as did his circumstances. And he’s made honest progress into thinking before speaking.

Just...not always.

A huge influence into his gentled behavior has been, of course, his relationship with Hinata. At first acquaintances, then allies, then coworkers, and lastly spouses...they’ve each rubbed off on each other over the years. Whether it be Hinata’s tempering of his, well...temper, or his insistence she garner a little attitude herself. So she’s taken a bit more seriously, that’s all. He quickly grew tired of her letting everyone walk all over her. Even her teammates seemed to indulge in her compassion and generosity a bit too often for his liking.

Something he himself tries to be conscious of.

For the most part, Sasuke’s managed to rein in his blunt approach. He’ll still give deadpanned looks and resort to sarcasm, but - in all fairness - it takes a bit more, nowadays, to rile him that far.

...except...for certain circumstances.

“All right, I’m heading back.”

“Whaaat? Already? But - but we just got here!” Naruto throws up exasperated hands, half-clothed in shorts, sandals, and wrapped limbs. “You’ve been putting off sparring with me for  _ ages _ \- it hasn’t even been an hour, teme!”

“You have your  _ Hokage lessons _ , and I have my police work,” Sasuke replies flatly. “We’re  _ both _ busy more often than not. I also have a  _ wife _ , just like you do. Consider me overloaded with responsibilities...which means less time for sparring, yeah.”

“Sasukeee…!”

“Don’t  _ Sasukeee _ me.”

Lips purse in a pout. “All right,  _ fine _ \- but you owe me another round before next week to make up for it!”

“Whatever makes you happy.” He actually has a rendezvous with said aforementioned wife for a date night. They’ve both been so swamped with cases lately, there’s been little time to spend together. And if he’s going to do that, he needs to get home and shower before the day slips away completely.

So, they both regather their gear (which...is mostly just clothes) before leaving the training grounds behind. All the while, Naruto decides to ramble about his Hokage preparatory training. Apparently Kakashi’s been hounding him extra hard this week. Which is also why he’s extra disappointed they’re calling it quits so early.

“One a’ these days, I’m gonna drag  _ him _ out for a spar!” Naruto enthuses, throwing mock punches as they walk. “See how he likes it, huh?” Noticing Sasuke’s no longer beside him, Naruto looks back. “Uh...Sasuke…?”

He’s not listening. Instead, a single dark eye stares steadily ahead about a block.

Trying to lean into his line of vision, Naruto perks a brow before doing his best to follow it. And...then he sees what the Uchiha sees.

Hinata’s standing outside a shop, a bag of...something in her arms against her chest. Opposite her, body language all too forward, is some man neither of them have seen before. A jōnin, by the looks of it. And though Hinata looks all too done with his advances...it’s clear he’s not heeding her.

Having come to a full stop, Sasuke then begins marching determinedly forward.

“Whoa whoa, wait - hold up!” Naruto grabs his friend by the arm, earning a venomous glare that loosens his grip and stumbles the blond back. Hands lift defensively. “I’m just sayin’, uh...y’look a little  _ intense _ there, buddy.”

“No shit.”

“Aaand maybe you should, uh...see if she can handle it herself? Hinata-chan’s a big girl, Sasuke! She can take care of herself, right?”

Indecision flickers over Sasuke’s face. On one hand...Naruto has a point. Hinata is also a jōnin level shinobi, and on top of that one of the best wielders of the Byakugan in her clan. If she really wanted to, she could probably lay this guy flat on his ass the moment she decides to. And he doesn’t want to fight all her battles. She  _ can _ handle herself. She’s not a maiden in need of defending.

But on the other hand, the longer this goes on without her acting, the hotter Sasuke’s blood boils in his veins, until he can hear little more than his furious heartbeat in his ears.

“...uh…?”

No more waiting.

Leaving his old teammate behind, Sasuke crosses the block with an unmoving eye, everyone around him skittering out of his path and looking at him incredulously. At least they know he means business.

“I told you, I’m married.”

“What, so we can’t have a friendly chat?”

“Friendly, sure - but this is getting a bit beyond  _ friendly _ , and I -!”

Hinata’s cut off as Sasuke steps between them. With one hand, he grabs the offender’s shirt front, lifting him up with hardly an ounce of effort. Immediately he squirms with a yelp. “H-hey! Put me down, asshole!”

“Are you deaf?” Sasuke hisses. “She’s married.  _ To me _ . That is my  _ wife _ you’re chatting up. And if you don’t clear off and leave her alone, I’ll take your tongue. See how easy it is for you to bother married women after that,  _ asshole _ .”

By now, Sasuke’s Sharingan flares to life, and the offender goes ghostly pale as he realizes just who’s talking to him. “I-I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to -”

“I don’t give a damn what your intentions were. I’m putting them to a stop.  _ Now _ . The only thing left you should be doing is scampering down the road with your tail between your legs.” Sasuke drags his face an inch from his own. “...I see you near her again, I’ll take more than just your tongue.”

Shaking so hard it’s difficult to tell he’s nodding, the man lands with an oomph as Sasuke drops him, scuttling backward before finding his feet to run.

“Hn…”

By now, Naruto’s closed the distance between them, standing beside Hinata completely deadpanned with hands shoved in his pockets. “Well  _ that _ was  _ very _ subtle,” he praises sarcastically. “You handled that like a pro.”

“As far as I’m concerned, I did. He knows not to bother Hinata, and I didn’t have to maim him.”

Hinata, in the subsequent silence, simply blinks large eyes in the aftermath. “...um…”

“Next time some idiot bothers you, just knock him on his ass, Hinata,” Sasuke insists, turning to her coolly.

“That’s...not exactly good manners…”

“And neither is someone ignoring a wedding band and continuing to hit on someone already married. Tell them off, and if  _ that _ doesn’t work, go a step further and send him flying. Talking only gets so far with people like that.”

She just heaves a small, exasperated sigh.

“Well, I better skedaddle,” Naruto then announces, stretching. “See ya later, teme. Try not to assault anyone  _ else  _ on the way home, huh? Cops might arrest ya!”

The Uchiha just scoffs, moving on and waiting for Hinata to fall into step with him.

“...I really could have handled that.”

“Yeah, you could have. But  _ would _ you have? Even now, you’re too soft on people like that, Hinata,” Sasuke rebukes with a sigh. “You’re allowed to speak up if someone’s making you uncomfortable. And sometimes, you have to talk with your fists if their ears aren’t working. If you don’t, then I’ll do it for you.”

It’s her turn to look coolly to  _ him _ . “You don’t have to protect me.”

“I only will if you won’t.” He comes to a stop. “...Hinata, you’re important to me. The closest outside my blood. I don’t... _ like _ seeing people treat you like that. But what’s worse is that you don’t stand up to it! It’s already clear that being around me - around us - is going to make your life harder. So you’d better get used to being hard back, or something’s going to happen to you.” There’s a momentary softening, butting his brow to hers. “...and then I’ll have to do a lot  _ worse _ than roughing someone up a little.”

Looking up at him with doe eyes, Hinata wilts ever so slightly. “...I’ll try to be more...vigilant about it.”

“...good. Now, let’s go home, and get ready for that date.”

“...oh! I thought you’d forgotten!”

“Of course not. I told Naruto I couldn't spar for long. But I need a shower before we go anywhere else.”

“Yes. Yes, you do.”

**Author's Note:**

> ...y'know what? I think I'm late often enough by now, there's not much point in my apologies. So...we'll skip that from now on, ahaha~
> 
> Annnyway, I got inspired as soon as I read this prompt. Because let's face it: Sasuke is...NOT, in any way, a subtle person. So of course I read it as sarcastic. Or rather, Naruto did. But can you blame Sasuke? Hinata's just too soft on jerks like that. She needs to be more like Sasuke! In...some regards, anyway.
> 
> But with that, we're all caught up for tonight. Thanks for reading!


End file.
